


How Phoenixes Are Reborn

by bad_seed



Category: Menendez
Genre: Abusive Parents, Additional Warnings Apply, Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Beating, Child Abuse, Child Neglect, Coming Out, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Eventual Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Intense, M/M, Major Character Injury, Murder, Parent/Child Incest, Physical Abuse, Possible Character Death, Protective Older Brothers, Protective Siblings, Protectiveness, Rape, Rating May Change, Self-Discovery, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Sexual Abuse, Sibling Bonding, Sibling Incest, Triggers, Underage Rape/Non-con, Verbal Abuse, Verbal Humiliation, Violence, Warnings May Change
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-11
Updated: 2018-06-11
Packaged: 2019-05-21 04:25:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14908298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bad_seed/pseuds/bad_seed
Summary: Abuse - to treat (a person or an animal) with cruelty or violence, especially regularly or repeatedly.Symptoms may include but are not limited to-•Withdrawal from friends or usual activities•Changes in behavior — such as aggression, anger, hostility or hyperactivity — or changes in school performance•Depression, anxiety or unusual fears or a sudden loss of self-confidence•An apparent lack of supervision•Frequent absences from school or reluctance to ride the school bus•Reluctance to leave school activities, as if he or she doesn't want to go home•Attempts at running away•Rebellious or defiant behavior•Attempts at suicideAugust 20th, 1989, Lyle and Erik Menendez opened fire on their parents in their multimillion dollar mansion. They speak of wanting to take it back, to change what they did.But what if they could?





	1. Chapter 1

"Hi, buddy. We're home," Kitty spoke gently with a smile as she walked into the den of her house in Princeton, the tightly wrapped bundle of white blankets cradled in her arms. Lyle, almost three at the time, looked up at his mother with big brown eyes, a cheesy smile forming and dimpling his chubby cheeks.  
"Mommy!" Lyle giggled, running over to wrap himself around his mother's leg. His father, Jose, reached down and ruffled his head of black hair, prying his son off of Kitty's leg to lead him to the couch. Jose sat down first, lifting Lyle with a soft grunt. Lyle laughed as he was brought on to the couch to sit next to Jose, his feet not even reaching the edge of the couch. "Mommy, what is that?" He asked with a tilt of his head, curious as to what Kitty was smiling at.  
"That's your baby brother, Lyle," Kitty chuckled as she slowly made her way over to her husband and oldest son. "Would you like to hold him?"  
Lyle nodded frantically, having never held a baby before. He reached out with grabby little hands, pulling at the blanket. "No no no," Jose was quick to pull Lyle's arms back and have him sit down. "You have to be careful. Just sit back, your mom will place him in your lap. Keep him held a bit up though, okay?" He explained as he positioned Lyle's arms.  
"Okay...okay...okay, I'm ready," Lyle nodded confidently, keeping his small arms exactly the way Jose put them. Kitty leaned down, her blonde hair falling into her face. She gently placed the baby in Lyle's arms, stroking it's hair before standing back up. Lyle gasped softly, pulling apart the blanket so he could really look at the child. "He has rolls," he giggled cutely, poking at the chubby baby's stomach.  
The baby squirmed in Lyle's arms as he started whining. "Oh no, it's okay! You're okay! You're okay!" Lyle gasped, holding the baby close to his chest. Almost instantly the child calmed down and relaxed against Lyle, quickly falling asleep.  
"Good job, Lyle. Now that you're a big boy, you're going to need to help mommy and daddy take care of Erik. Can you do that?" Kitty asked softly.  
"I can. I can do that. I can take care of...of..."  
"Erik," Jose finished for him with a weak laugh.  
"Erik! I can take care of Erik," Lyle smiled brightly. He looked down at Erik with that same smile, excited for what the future might bring for them.

Erik's loud crying woke Lyle late that night. He was quick to sit up in bed, a bit startled by the sudden sound. He knew his parents were asleep and scurried into the nursery, going to stand by the crib.  
"Shh...shh! You're gonna get in trouble," Lyle whisper-yelled. Erik turned his head and looked at him with big, teary blue eyes as he continued to cry.  
"Uh oh...okay...help mommy and daddy take care of Erik," Lyle took a deep breath before climbing up the side of the crib and falling in next to the baby.  
"Shhh...shhh," he hushed Erik, pulling the baby on to his chest. Erik snuggled deep into Lyle's neck, quickly becoming a deadweight as he slept on top of his older brother.  
Lyle couldn't stop the cheeky smile that crept on to his face at the feeling of snuggling something smaller than him and being able to protect it.  
"It's okay, Erik. I'm Lyle. I'll protect you."


	2. Chapter 2

"Mom!" Six year old Lyle shouted in annoyance. His three year old brother, Erik, was trying on his new swimsuit and was clearly beyond excited by the shrill, happy squealing coming from down the hallway.  
"Lyle, calm down, he's excited," Kitty scoffed from where she was sat in the living, Lyle upstairs in his bedroom. Lyle rested his forehead on his palm as he tried to focus on coloring, slamming his blue crayon down when the chubby legged toddler came waddling in.  
"Lyle, pool! Gotta swim!" Erik giggled adorably, taking one of Lyle's hands in both of his, his little fingers wrapped around Lyle's. His red swim shorts stopped just above his knees, matching floaties on his arms.  
"I'm busy, Erik," Lyle sighed as he took his hand back, trying to focus on his coloring rather than his curly haired little brother. He used to be so happy to have a little sibling but now the very thought of Erik made his skin crawl. Something about him made Lyle angry.  
"Busy with what? What...what are you color?" Erik smiled, dimples carving into his chubby cheeks. He skipped over to the chair next to Lyle, struggling with the floaties as he pulled himself up. Erik sat on his knees so he could see, sitting as close as he could to Lyle. He adored his older brother, Lyle was his whole world. Lyle just seemed so much cooler than him and like he could conquer the world since he was in first grade now and Erik was still in preschool.  
"Go away! You have your own room!" Lyle whined angrily and put his palms against his baby brother, shoving him roughly with all of his might in his little body. Erik fell back on to the ground with a squeak, his eyes wide in fear once he had landed on his back. He whimpered softly, his lower lip trembling as fat tears came to his blue eyes.  
"Y-you said yesterday we could swim swim," Erik sniffled, wiping away his falling tears. He couldn't believe Lyle had just pushed him. All he wanted was to see what he was coloring before they went swimming.  
"Yeah, well that was yesterday. Just shut up and go away," Lyle groaned, tugging roughly at his hair. Erik cried a bit louder as he stood up, running from Lyle's room and into his own.

Lyle continued to color in peace, the blue crayon in his cookie monster drawing going all outside of the thick black lines. He was kicking his legs happily, his feet unable to touch the ground where he sat. His pleasant afternoon was interrupted by the sound of his door being slammed shut. His head shot up in fear of the loud bang, seeing Jose by the door.  
"Hi, daddy," Lyle waved to his father. Jose growled as he stormed over, taking a tight hold on Lyle's small wrist to yank him off the chair. Lyle squeaked at the pull, feeling his skin bruising under Jose's fingers.  
"Your brother wanted to see what you were doing. You don't push him. Who do you think you are?" Jose scolded. He brought his hand up quickly and time seemed to work in slow motion as that hand was brought into a hard slap across the child's face, the sound echoing in the room.  
Lyle whimpered at the feeling, his small hands quickly coming up to his face to hold his cheek. Tears were quick to start falling, his chubby face going pink. Lyle's hands were smacked away from his face so Jose could have full access, taking a hand full of black hair and dragging him to the bed.  
Lyle was sobbing now as his father began to throw punches into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him with every punch.  
"D-daddy, please!" He cried loudly, trying to squirm away from Jose. It had gone to the point of his stomach going numb, his ribs aching as the pain spread through his body, his head starting to pound in a migraine.  
"Take it. Deal with it," Jose seethed, his own face red from the effort. The red of his face took over Lyle's vision and suddenly everything was red. The bed he laid on was red, the carpet below the same shade. His chest and stomach burned crimson as if someone had pressed a hot pan to his abdomen. Sneaking a glance at the crimson red, Lyle was able to point out the curves of black and blue in the shape of knuckles all over the place, a horrified scream leaving his throat. The scream became louder and more fearful as more and more bruises rose to the surface, leaving his abdomen a mess of the blue crayon color he used to color cookie monster.  
"Shut the fuck up!" Jose was quick to cover Lyle's mouth in the middle of the screech, his eyes darting to the opened window where curtains swayed in the freeze summer breeze. Silence was all that was heard, a side from the soft chirping of birds in trees. The wind rustled the branches outside and the faint sound of Erik's giggling filled Lyle's ears. It was comforting, that giggling. It was a familiar sound, one he knew far to well, one that felt like home in ways home didn't feel. Lyle took a deep breath, focusing in on his baby brother's laughter as a way to calm himself down, letting it ring in his brain and take over his very being. Lyle's fingertips felt warm, the warmth dripping into his palms and down his arms, running a shiver down his spine as the warmth burst in his chest.  
The six-year-old was too focused on the giggling to notice he was once again alone in his room. He lifted his head off the bed, looking around his bedroom with furrowed brows. He glanced from his large pile of stuffed animals to the open doorway, the sound of laughter fading away as he snapped out of his daze. Lyle sighed softly and hopped off his bed, looking at the time on the clock. Just as he was figuring it out, Kitty called her sons down for dinner.

Lyle laid awake in bed, finding it difficult to sleep for a reason he couldn't explain, as if his body knew he was staying up for something. Almost on cue from his thoughts, he heard the soft whimper from down the hall. He was quick to sit up and throw back his sheets, slipping out of his bed. Lyle knew that one whimper would lead to more and sounds like that got you in trouble.  
He grabbed a stuffed bunny, holding it close as he tiptoed out of his bedroom and down the hallway, making his way into his brother's room.  
"Erik?" Lye whispered, walking over to the bed. He put the bunny on the bed before pulling himself up, sitting next to the toddler.  
"Lyle! Scary!" Erik cried, turning to wrap himself around his older brother. Lyle nodded slightly and wrapped his arms around his waist, rubbing his back.  
"Nightnare?" Lyle sighed quietly as Erik nodded in response, laying back with his little brother on top of him. He pulled the sheets over their bodies, his cheek rested on Erik's curls.  
"Love you," Erik yawned in a high pitched squeak once his crying had calmed down. He cuddled into Lyle, slowly closing his big eyes.  
"Love you too. I'll protect you," Lyle whispered, falling asleep with Erik next to him.


End file.
